h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

then you know what I mean, plus : I've only met my friends for a few hours, so neither of us can know whether we'd really get along nicely for more than a few hours
Thre's a German saying about visitors, I can post it on the other thread if you want me to

Oooh! Now there's a thought!!!

Okay can the next lesson be...common sayings, phrases and catch-words...if that makes any sense? Like slang words that make no sense when straight translated, and sayings that people regularly use.
I can do that here as well if you like. I can never decide how much English you two know!

That would be great, I have a book with idioms, but it's the wrong way round ( English-German), so I can never really search for one when I need it. And there is a game, I'll go and find the link

*leans back and hopes B’Elena will hold the lesson”

I've just alerted someone I forgot that there is an English thread here now. I'm also about to link it from the front page. I really ought to start doing proper things here instead of just talking

Erm...culture? words? slang? news? whaaatt??? *runs around like a headless chicken*

Now here#s the link to the game : http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/F64293?thread=302312&post=5785608#p5785608

Okay...let's start something proper.

You have to give me a short paragraph saying what you have done today, and quickly say something about a piece of news to do with England. Then I'll correct/comment on it and we can talk about any questions or interesting things that come up.

*hopes this works*

I haven't done much today, just chatted
I have neither heard nor seen any news today, so I have no idea what to say

well go and find something! That's part of the exercise

I will but have to prepare supper now, back soon

my day:
Today I was on a shopping spree together with my mother. I bought a floor lamp (standard lamp) and a little table with rolls.
Then I spent some hours online, mainly writing e-mails and posts on h2g2. In the evening I watched one of my most favorite TV-shows: Late Night with Conan O’Brien.

news:
There has been that story on the news about Prince Harry hitting some paparazzi for several days now. I wonder when the photographers decided to hunt for photos of William and Harry again. Wasn’t there some unwritten rule after Diana’s death that paparazzis will leave her sons alone?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3946903.stm


A question: I’m not sure which style is required for this exercise. Am I supposed to write formal English here?

katkodl

I think possibly writing in formal English for the news report.

"Today I was on a shopping spree together with my mother"

Today I WENT on a shopping spree with my mother.

This is because it's something you've done and finished. In the same way you wouldnt say

"Today I was making lots of pancakes"
You'd say
Today I made lots of pancakes.


"Then I spent some hours online, mainly writing e-mails and posts on h2g2"

Then I spent A FEW hours online, mainly writing e-mails and POSTING on h2g2.

You can't really say SOME hours because...actually Im not entirely sure! I know that an English person wouldn't say it, but it's not entirely grammatically incorrect.

Prince Harry is a bit of a thug to be honest. The reason he is in the news so much is because, as royalty he is giving them a bit of a bad name. He's not very clever and is the sort of guy who takes the piss out of other people at Eton, just because they have a scholarship.
He has also been accused of cheating in his Alevels, something I wouldnt be surprised to find is true.
He was snapped outside a club in London last week and there are debates about whether he merely pushed the camera away and the photographer got hit, or he actually socked the photographer.

There is of course a lot of sympathy going to Harry, but at the end of the day...he's been seen doing a lot of things that your average teenager might do, but not all DO do. I dont go out all the time, take drugs, drink and get in fights etc etc.
William on the other hand, has been seen doing a lot of good things...it's a shame he doesn't want to be king really.





Prince Harry

DON'T ask why I signed myself Prince Harry...I was going to say something and forgot

Can’t I say "I wrote a post“?

But I can say “Today while I was making pancakes Katkat called me.”, can’t I?


Prince William

You can say "I wrote a post" but we tend to use "I posted on h2g2" for message boards. I think it's because when you're writing a letter you dont say "I wrote some post".

and yes you can most certainly say
"Today while I was making pancakes Katkat called me.".

Hello

What have you done today ?

I went to Rüdesheim, more precise, to the Niederwald Denkmal aka Germania, near Rüdesheim. The weather was fantastic, we even saw people harvesting the grapes for the new wine on our way there, the view over the Rhine was marvellous, and there even was a organ-grinder with his beautiful barrel-organ and a fake ape
News I read today, are about tougher security measurements around the Palace of Westminster, and about a man being 'electrocuted' on a railway line in southwest London

"I went to Rüdesheim, more precise, to the Niederwald Denkmal aka Germania, near Rüdesheim"

You want to be "or more precisely", or "or to be precise". Because "more precise" doesn't mean anything on its own.

That next HUUUGGEEE sentence needs a full stop after talking about the wine, because the two things (the grapes and the view) aren't to do with each other.

"News I read today, are about tougher..."

THE news I read today, WAS about...

News, whilst a plural word can't stand without something before it because it is used as a singular word.
Example
"The news is that kat has three feet"
"They brought too much news with them and I had to have a lie-down"
"Have you seen what was on the news?" In this case "the news" is the television program.

Also...the palace of westminster is usually called "the houses of parliament". It's only called "the palace of westminster" when trying to sound posh. Nobody calls it that in reality though.

Nice other story. I won't ask how you found that because it wasn't a big story
The man fell in Surbiton station (southwest london) this morning and was pronounced dead when the emergency services got there. And yes he WAS electrocuted! No " " needed



Today I had spring onions and humous for lunch, spoke to someone on the phone, and read a book. I haven't had a shower or bath yet, and am still wearing the clothes I wore yesterday, and the day before, and the day before that.

In news today, the British Navy granted a naval technician permission to practice Satanism whilst aboard ship. This is because of the "equal oportunities" policy. Conservative MP Anne Widdecombe claimed that Satanism is wrong and that whilst there is nothing that can be done about it, she hopes that it doesn't spread.

Go to the BBC Homepage, you'll find the news I quoted there - in precisely the same words I used, even with the " "

And I do hope you're kidding about the satanism - thing

Hmm I think it's since been confirmed that he was electrocuted.

And the houses of parliament thing was just a side point.

And nope Im not kidding!

The world's a place to be, sometimes